What was Lost in the Woods
by lillyrocket
Summary: Tragedy strikes the siblings from a foe they never saw as a threat. No Incest. Warning- Language and very dark themes including rape.
1. Chapter 1

_It shouldn't have ended like this._ Hansel thought bitterly.

Years spent hunting and killing the things nightmares were made of. He and his sister had fought and destroyed them all. Ironic that it would be a mere man who would ruin them. How could it be that a simple human being would be the creature to finally stop the famous witch hunters?

Hansel's body was wracked by another torrent of pain. His back arched off the dirty wooden floor of the one room cabin and the chains binding his wrists clanged as he shook. A scream threatened to erupt from his throat but he clenched his teeth and swallowed back the cry. He wouldn't let Gretel hear his pain. She was suffering too much, what was being done to her was monstrous and he refused to add any more pain to her world.

_All my fault._ Gretel thought as the sick man hovering above her defiled her body again and again. His foul breaths making her gag as he grunted into her face.

The pain wasn't the worst of it. Gretel had suffered countless injuries in her life, physical pain she was accustom to. It was the thought that she'd failed her brother which hurt the most. Hansel was lying only feet from her, his body jerking with pain and the need for his medicine; the medicine which was so tantalizingly close to her own outstretched fingers. She fought wildly against her attacker trying to throw off his oppressive weight; all of her training and technique forgotten in her panic. The man above her was angered by her struggles and slapped her across the face. Her head rocked to the side by the force of the blow and her vision dimmed for a few seconds. The man between her legs resumed his assault on her body once she was still again.

Gretel spit out a mouth full of blood and turned her head to check on her brother. Their eyes met and Gretel felt humiliated to know that Hansel was seeing what was being done to her. She'd have given almost anything to keep him from watching. It seemed like the man had been raping her for hours, although Gretel knew it hadn't been that long. At first Hansel had fought against the chains binding him to the wall but as the need for his medicine increased his struggles had decreased. Now the most he was capable of was simply breathing. Breathing and watching his sister being brutalized. After another agonizing few minutes the man groaned, shuddered, and fell onto Gretel breathing heavily in the aftermath of his completion.

_Little cunt isn't fighting anymore is she?_ Gustav thought as he pushed his sweat soaked body off of the young woman.

He smirked as she turned onto her side and curled up into a tight ball. She'd fought like a wild cat at first, but now she simply lay there and cried. Gustav loved that he'd broken her. The threats she'd screamed at him before he'd started had been impressive, Gustav would admit that. He'd never heard such filth pour from a woman's mouth before. But just like every bitch he'd ever known she was all talk and no action.

The brother was no longer fighting either Gustav noticed. He wasn't sure what was wrong with the younger man, but it seemed like he'd be dead before Gustav had a chance to finish him off. Too bad, he'd been looking forward to taking the girl in front of her brother at least once more.

"Hey girlie you aren't giving out on me now are you? I plan on using you at least a few more times." He whispered into Gretel's ear as he leaned over and pulled her hair to force her head back.

The girl mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" He mocked and leaned closer to her.

"I said you'll never fucking touch me again you bastard." Gretel suddenly shouted.

Without warning she lashed out both of her legs and caught Gustav in the groin. He let out a strangled cry of pain and doubled over, his hands covering his testicles protectively. Before he had a chance to even draw in a breath she kicked him again, this time in the face. The loud crack of his jaw breaking brought a slight smile to Gretel's face. The large man fell to the floor in a daze and spit out a mouth full of blood and teeth.

Gretel stood above the pathetic excuse for a man, heedless of her nudity, wanting nothing more than to torture and humiliate him as badly as he had her. But greater than Gretel's need for revenge was her need to protect her brother. Moving quickly she grabbed her knife from where it had fallen earlier and slit the man's throat in one smooth motion, feeling absolutely no remorse as she took his life.

"Hansel!" Gretel screamed as she scrambled to get his medicine. She clutched the syringe tightly in her hand and scurried to the prone still form of her brother, ignoring the screaming pain raging through nearly every inch of her body. She had jammed the needle into his thigh and dispensed the medicine before her rapist had even finished twitching.

It always took a few minutes for Hansel's medicine to work when he went too long without it. Gretel used the time while she waited to dress herself, although since her clothing had been ripped off of her it didn't cover much, but she felt better being at least a little more concealed.

Once dressed Gretel settled herself on the ground and picked up Hansel slightly so that his head could rest in her lap. His breathing was shallow and uneven and his pulse was much too slow. She tapped her brother's face lightly to try and bring him around with no success.

"Hansel please wake up. Please? You can't leave me alone big brother. Not now… not after…" Gretel plead to her unconscious brother.

She couldn't understand why he wasn't waking up. It had never taken this long for his medicine to work before. Gretel didn't know what to do. She knew her brother needed help, but she wasn't willing to leave him alone and unprotected. It was beginning to get dark outside and they never had found the witch who they'd originally come into the woods after in the first place. If she left her brother now she could be leaving him in the hands of a monster.

"Hansel wake up! Wake Up!" She shouted straight into his face, hoping that this perhaps would finally bring him around, but he didn't give her even so much as a twitch.

As the light faded from the room Gretel lay down on the ground and curled her body up next to her brother's. She kept one hand on his chest so that she could feel his heart beating at all times. In her other hand she kept her dagger clutched so tightly that her knuckles turned white and her fingers cramped.

Gretel couldn't seem to take her eyes off of the dead body of her rapist. She knew he was dead. She'd felt his hot blood gush over her hand and had watched it pool and congeal on the floor. But no matter how many times she assured herself that he couldn't hurt her anymore Gretel couldn't seem to stop watching him. In the near total darkness of the cabin Gretel couldn't stop seeing his face looming over hers. Unwanted memories flashed through her mind and without warning Gretel was screaming. Screaming and crying and wishing more than anything that her brother would wake up and make things better for her, just like he'd been doing their whole lives.

"Please wake up Hansel." She whispered once more into the darkness.

TBC

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

A/N- I haven't written fanfiction or well anything else for that matter in a long time. I'm trying hard to get back into the practice of writing. Thank you to anyone who reads this, I hope you'll stick around and check back for more of the story soon.


	2. Chapter 2

**24 Hours Earlier**

The tavern looked and smelled just like the countless other small town taverns Gretel had been in before. Crudely made tables and chairs littered the floor without any sense of order. Patrons, mostly men, sat alone or in small groups drinking ale and eating what was being passed off as the best food in town. A large fireplace on one wall left half the room sweltering hot and the other decidedly drafty. The scent of the place was an amalgamation of alcohol, frying meat, smoke, and stale unwashed villagers.

Gretel moved through the crowd and claimed an empty table with enough seats for Hansel and Ben once they finished speaking with the mayor. After she was seated she signaled for the bar maid to bring her a drink and then leaned back in her chair to wait for her brother and friend to arrive. It had been a long trip to the small village of Aft and Gretel's back and legs were stiff from riding for nearly two days straight. She wanted nothing more than to drink some ale, eat a meal which consisted of more than stale bread and mealy apples, and then actually sleep in a bed for the night.

Gretel dug into her knapsack until she found the research papers she'd started on the village of Aft and began to reread through her notes. Five children taken within the last month, all girls, all under the age of ten. Gretel figured that the witch was most likely after virgin hearts or blood. That was what witches were usually after when they took young girls. What Gretel couldn't figure out was where to begin searching. Each of the girls had been kidnapped miles apart from each other. Some of them had been taken from the farms where they lived, two others had disappeared in the woods, and one girl had been taken right from her own bed in the middle of the night. She was hopeful that perhaps one of the villagers would be able to give them a lead as to where they should look.

"So are you new in town?" A voice asked shyly from beside her and set down a mug of ale in front of Gretel.

Gretel smirked and didn't look up from her reading. "Has that line ever once worked for you?" She asked with amusement.

"Honestly no. But there really hasn't ever been a chance to use it before. We don't get a lot of new people here in Aft." The voice admitted.

Gretel gave a genuine laugh at his honesty and looked up from her work finally. The man standing at her side was tall and lanky. He had kind blue eyes partially hidden behind messy black hair. He was giving her a warm shy smile and holding out his hand for her to shake. "I'm Joseph by the way. I'm guessing you must be Gretel. The whole village has been talking about your arrival for over a week."

Gretel returned the handshake and the smile. "It's nice to meet you Joseph."

Joseph shifted from one foot to the other nervously. "I-uh… my younger sister Emma is one of the missing girls. I just wanted to thank you for coming here to help find them."

Gretel pushed the chair next to her out with her foot and gestured for Joseph to sit down. "My brother and I are going to do everything we can to bring back your sister and the other girls safely." She comforted as he sat down. "Is there anything you can tell me that might help? Maybe a place in the woods where the witch might be keeping them? It would be somewhere that the animals of the forest avoid, plants wouldn't grow there either."

Joseph furrowed his brow and shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry I don't have any idea. We've searched much of the forest but the woods around Aft are huge."

"Well like I said we'll do everything we can to get all of the girls back and kill the witch." Gretel assured him.

Joseph nodded and pushed himself up from the table. "I'd better get back to the stables. That's where I work so if you want a ride just ask for me. I mean- uh if you and your brother need horses I can help." He stammered.

Gretel laughed at his awkward offer of help and gave him a final smile before she returned to her reading. She was interrupted only moments later by a large hand clasping her shoulder tightly. Gretel reacted instantly, grabbing the wrist and twisting it so that the hand was forced to release her. She jumped to her feet and spun to face the person who had grabbed her.

He was taller than her by at least a foot. Tanned skin, broad shoulders, and eyes so brown they looked nearly black in the fire light. He was staring at Gretel with a wide cocky grin plastered to his face. Gretel rolled her eyes and stepped away from the large man. She knew what was coming. There was one like him in every single town. Over confident and spoiled, his daddy was probably someone important to the town and the asshole standing in front of her probably thought he could have who or whatever he wanted.

"You're Gretel right? The witch hunter?" He boomed, nearly shouting at her even though they were less than two feet apart. He said nearly the same words that Joseph had, but it sounded completely different coming from him.

Gretel nodded and took a sip of her ale. "I am and you are?"

The man flashed her a second smile, showing two rows of white straight teeth. She supposed most women would probably find him handsome, but Gretel hated men like this. She'd been dealing with them since she'd hit puberty.

"Gustav. My father is the magistrate here in Aft." He introduced proudly.

_Nailed it._ Gretel thought with a smirk. Just like she'd thought before there was one like him in every town.

"Well that's impressive for your father. Please congratulate him for me." Gretel quipped and attempted to sit back down in her chair. Gustav stopped her by wrapping his large hand around her bicep.

"Let's have a drink." He suggested.

"I've already got one and you're keeping me from it. Now if you don't mind… how bout you fuck off?" Gretel sneered and pried his hand away from her once again.

"Ain't you a mouthy bitch? Now I do believe I told you we were gonna have a drink." Gustav spit angrily.

"And I do believe I told you to FUCK OFF!" Gretel shouted and pushed the brute away from her.

Gustav let out a growl of anger and back handed Gretel so hard that she spun around and staggered into her table, her ale spilling across the wooden planks and onto the stone floor. Gretel grabbed the knife she kept strapped in her boot and took a deep breath to steady herself. In one fluid motion she straightened up and spun around slashing at Gustav's face with her blade. She drew a long gash from his temple across his cheek to his chin. Gustav howled from pain and fell to the ground clutching at his bleeding face.

The tavern grew silent behind Gretel and it suddenly occurred to her that cutting open the face of the magistrate's son might not have been her most brilliant move ever.

"Gretel!" Hansel shouted from the doorway.

"I'm fine Hansel, just taking care of a little trouble." Gretel assured her brother without taking her eyes off of the bleeding man at her feet.

Hansel was only mildly concerned for his sister; he knew Gretel was capable of handling herself. Ben simply smiled and followed the older man into the tavern. In the eight months that he had been training under Hansel and Gretel he had become used to scenes like this.

Gretel turned to the two as they walked over. Hansel felt his anger ratchet up a notch when he took in the bloody nose and swelling cheek that his sister was sporting. He gently gripped his sister's jaw in his hand and turned her head back and forth to examine her bruises more clearly. His eyes slid from his injured sister to the bleeding man. "I'm guessing you're the one responsible for the bruises on my sister?"

Hansel knelt down so that he could look directly into the man's eyes. "You touch my sister again and what I'll do to you will make that cut she gave you look like a little shaving mishap." He whispered venomously. Without waiting for a reply Hansel stood up and directed both his sister and Ben towards the stairs and up to the room which was waiting for them.

Once the trio was gone the tavern seemed to come back to life. Three of Gustav's friends hurried over to where he still lay bleeding on the ground. "Gustav are you alright?" His friend Anders shouted.

Gustav pulled out a dirty handkerchief from his back pocket and pressed it to his ruined face. "I'm going to make that bitch pay. We're going to make both of them pay." He sneered.

TBC

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N- So here is a little background filler chapter for ya'll. Thanks for reading and a big thanks to the people who review. I'll do my best to update as frequently as I can.


	3. Chapter 3

The following morning Gretel's eyes popped open just like they always did a few seconds before the timer around Hansel's wrist began to sound. She opened her eyes to narrow slits and watched furtively as Hansel was roused by the ticking sound. Only once he had given himself the injection and put his medicine away did Gretel close her eyes and try to fall back asleep.

It had been like that for years. Gretel always waking to make sure that her brother took his medicine without complications and Hansel pretending like he didn't know that Gretel was secretly watching him. She knew how much it bothered him to have the sugar sickness, hated the fact that it kept him dependent on medicine to live, and the fact that it made them both vulnerable at times during their battles.

Gretel had just managed to doze off again when an insistent knocking at the door roused her once more. Hansel jumped up from the floor and loaded his crossbow before opening the door just a crack.

"What?" Hansel asked; his irritation at being woken clear in his voice.

"I um- I came to warn you." The person on the other side of the door replied.

Gretel recognized the voice from the night before. "Hansel it's alright you can let him in." She informed her brother.

Hansel raised an eyebrow in question but stepped aside and allowed Joseph to enter the room. Gretel blushed when she realized that she was still in her night shirt. She tucked her bare legs under her and pulled the blanket up to her chin.

"Warn us about what?" Hansel asked.

"Gustav and his father are coming to arrest Gretel. They're bringing the sheriff and his deputy." Joseph informed them.

Gretel felt her blood rush to her cheeks in anger. Sure she might have overreacted a little but it was clear what he'd intended to try and do with her and hopefully now he'd have the scar as a reminder of how not to treat a woman.

"Why would they arrest her over a bar fight? They happen all the time." Hansel asked.

Gretel forgot her modesty and climbed out of the bed. "Well he is kind of the magistrate's son." She admitted to her brother.

Hansel slammed a fist into the wooden wall next to the door. "God dammit Gretel! You cut open the face of the magistrate's son? You should have known better!" He yelled at his sister.

Gretel felt her anger rise once again. It was bad enough that she was constantly dealing with men like Gustav who acted like she was a prize for the taking, but now her brother was actually yelling at her for defending herself?

"He grabbed me Hansel. He was trying to…" She trailed off.

Hansel seemed to deflate a bit and nodded his head in understanding. "Alright well we don't have time to argue about this. Get packed. Ben wake up!" He yelled at the younger man who was blissfully snoring on the small sagging sofa in the corner of the room.

Ben startled and fell to the floor with a loud thump. "What? Why are we getting up now? The sun's not even up." He protested.

"The sheriff's coming for Gretel we gotta get out of here." Hansel explained.

Without another word Ben began to pack up his belongings. Gretel quickly grabbed her clothes and stepped behind the small wooden dressing screen in the corner of the room. As she walked past Joseph she couldn't help but notice the way he glanced down at her bare legs, his face bright red. She smiled a little as she pulled on her clothes. It was nice for once to actually have a kind man finding her attractive. Gretel dressed in record time and hastily threw her belongings into her knapsack.

"If you take the back door out through the kitchen I have horses tied up at the end of the alley. You can use them to get out of town fast. Once you hit the main road on the other side of the forest just leave the horses tethered to the sign post, I'll go get them later." Joseph explained.

"Joseph we can't just leave town. What about the children? What about your sister?" Gretel protested.

"Well you won't be able to help them if you're in jail. Gretel I don't want anything to happen to you because of me. The only reason Gustav bothered you in the first place was because he saw us talking. He made fun of me on his way into the tavern. He said he'd show me how a real man picks up a woman. I told him you'd never go for an asshole like him and I guess he took that as a challenge. It's all my fault." Joseph explained.

Gretel felt herself blush and she gave Joseph a warm smile. "Thanks for saying that I'd never go for a prick like that."

Hansel stepped between the two and pulled his sister from the room. "We need to get moving. Once we're out into the woods we can search for the witch. I doubt these people will do anything to you if you bring back their missing children."

The three hunters hurried down the back stairs of the tavern and through the empty kitchen to the back door that Joseph had told them about. Just as he'd promised three horses were waiting for them at the end of the alley.

"Ben I want you to head into the woods and find Edward. You two start searching the eastern section of woods. Gretel and I will search the western half. We'll meet at the main road before the sun goes down. If you find the witch before then, don't do anything! You mark the spot on your map and then you get out of there. Then we'll all take her out tomorrow." Hansel ordered as he climbed into the saddle.

Ben nodded and climbed onto his horse. He spurred the steed and soon disappeared into the woods. Hansel directed his horse in the opposite direction and turned in the saddle to make sure Gretel was following. Just before Gretel could climb onto her horse a small mousy looking man stepped out from behind a toolshed and hurried over to her.

"Uh Miss Gretel?" He asked timidly.

Gretel nodded and climbed into the saddle. "Yes."

"I heard that you were looking for a place that the witch might be hiding. I think I might know of a place. There's a cabin out in the woods. It's real creepy, lots of dead plants around it. I was thinking she might be there." He explained in a nervous whisper.

Gretel nodded thoughtfully. "That could be the place. My brother and I will check it out. Where is it?"

He kicked at the dirt with the toe of one shoe and glanced up at Gretel for the briefest of moments before quickly looking back down at the ground. "Follow the stream south until you find a wooden bridge. The cabin is just on the other side behind a big bunch of thorn bushes."

"Thank you for your help." Gretel said curtly as she hurried after her brother.

The man smiled as he watched the brother and sister turn south following his instructions. Once they were out of sight he returned to the shadows behind the toolshed. He had to look up as a tall man stepped out into the sunlight.

The cut on Gustav's face stood out starkly in the early morning light, glaring like an angry red tear trailing down his cheek.

"Did you do it?" He asked, his voice slightly muffled because of the cut.

Anders nodded and gave Gustav a wide grin. "They're heading straight for your hunting cabin and they're taking the long route. If you hurry you'll beat them there."

Gustav smiled and then grimaced from the pain it caused. He touched the wound gingerly and glared in the direction Gretel had gone. "I'm gonna make that bitch pay."

A/N- I'm sorry it's been so long since I updated. I moved and had no internet connection for quite a while. I'll try and get the next chapter up shortly.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N- Just a warning this chapter is pretty dark and violent. You've been warned.

"Looks like this is the place." Hansel commented as they approached a small wooden bridge spanning a rushing stream.

Hansel and Gretel dismounted their horses and tied them to a tree. Once their rides were secured they both readied their crossbows and cautiously headed over the bridge and knelt behind a thicket of brambles. Through the tangle of thorns they could see a small run down shack. Animal skins hung from the walls and a pile of rusted traps sat beside the crooked front door.

"I don't know, it doesn't look like a witch's lair." Hansel whispered.

"We should still check it out." Gretel replied determinedly.

Hansel sighed and looked down to make sure his weapon was drawn and ready. When he glanced back up Gretel was already halfway to the cabin her crossbow aimed in front of her.

_Dammit Gretel_! Hansel thought. She was being reckless and impulsive. Hansel knew she was angry about the idiot in town who had hassled her and the fact that they'd been run out of town because of it, but she was going to get them both killed if she kept acting this way.

Feeling like he had no other choice Hansel stepped out into the open and followed Gretel. He lost sight of her as Gretel opened the door and stepped into the darkness of the cabin. She was out of his sight for less than a second when he heard her scream. All thoughts of being cautious left Hansel's mind with that one scream. He instantly sprinted to the cabin, breaking the old wooden door as he burst through it.

What he found inside the cabin was not what he had been expecting. He'd been prepared to find his sister fighting a witch. Instead he found Gretel being held by the man, Gustav, from the night before. He had her hair wrapped around his fist so tightly that her head was forced back exposing her pale white neck. A neck that currently had a knife pressed to it so hard that a thin line of blood was already staining her skin.

"Hansel watch out!" Gretel screamed, her eyes focusing behind Hansel.

Hansel turned around just in time to avoid the knife being thrust at his back. Hansel recognized the knife wielding man from earlier that morning; he was the one who had tipped them off about the cabin. With ease Hansel hit his arm, knocking the knife to the ground. In another instant his crossbow was pointed directly at the man's chest.

"Stop or I slit her throat!" Gustav shouted.

Hansel's finger eased off of the trigger but he didn't lower his weapon. "You hurt her and I kill your friend here." He threatened, looking over his shoulder at the man holding his sister.

Gustav scoffed and tightened his grip on Gretel's hair and shook her roughly. "Go ahead. You think I care? You kill him and I kill your bitch of a sister. Now put down the crossbow and step over to that corner."

Hansel looked over his should surveying the distance between him and Gustav, trying to calculate whether he could free his sister before Gustav could hurt her. He quickly realized that freeing her before Gustav could slit her throat was going to be impossible. Sighing in defeat Hansel dropped his weapon to the ground and followed Gustav's friend to the corner. Hanging from the wall was a long chain ending in shackles.

"Chain him up Anders. Make sure he's facin this way so he can watch." Gustav yelled, having to shout over the profanities flowing from Gretel as she realized that her brother was going to be chained up.

Anders grabbed Hansel's shoulder and spun him around so that he was facing his sister and her attacker. Without any warning Ander suddenly slammed the butt of Hansel's crossbow into his head. Hansel was only able to stay on his feet for a few seconds before everything went black.

He woke up to a nightmare. It was the ticking of his timer which roused him from unconsciousness. The sound was winding down getting slower and quieter which meant it had been ringing for quite some time. The way his body felt also told him that he was long overdue for his medication. His body was wracked with pain and it was hard to breathe. His arms were shackled above his head, pulled so tight that his muscles burned and shook from being stretched for so long. All these facts he cataloged in his head in a matter of seconds.

Seeing his sister made everything happening to him disappear in an instant. Gretel was stretched out in front of him on a long wooden table which was probably meant for skinning and cleaning animals. Her arms were tied above her head to the table and her ankles were similarly tied to the foot of the table.

"Oh good you're finally awake. That means we can start." Gustav quipped merrily, his voice dripping with sadistic glee.

Gustav pulled out a long silver hunting knife and smiled widely as he moved to Gretel's head. He pressed the flat side of the blade to Gretel's face and drew it down her cheek in a gentle almost loving manner. Gretel flinched away from the cold metal and gave Gustav an icy glare.

"Seems that we got some unfinished business." He said as he continued to rub the knife over Gretel's face.

"You disrespected me ya little bitch. I don't stand for that. This here is my town you're in and I ain't one to stand for some little girl thinkin she's too good for me."

Gustav placed slammed the knife down into the table right next to Gretel's head, once again making her flinch. He knelt down so that his face was a mere inch away from Gretel's.

"I want you to take a good long look at what you did to my face." He sneered and turned his cheek so that the angry red cut filled Gretel's vision.

Moving with a slow cold precision Gustav drew the knife blade down Gretel's face; cutting her so that she had a long cut matching the one she'd given him. Gretel clenched her teeth against the pain and glared at Gustav refusing to give him the satisfaction of crying out.

Hansel raged against his chains, screaming obscenities and threats at Gustav. He'd known anger before, but seeing someone hurt Gretel while she was defenseless caused a blind burning wrath like he'd never known before.

Anders' stepped away from the table and hit Hansel across the face with a long metal piece of pipe. Hansel slumped to the ground and didn't move.

"God dammit Anders! You better not of killed him yet. I got plans for this little lady and I want her brother watching the whole time." Gustav shouted.

Anders cringed against the outburst and leaned over Hansel to check his pulse. Hansel popped up with shocking speed and wrapped his ankles around the wormy man's neck. With a swift twist Hansel broke the man's neck and let the body slump to the ground in a lifeless heap.

Gustav showed little reaction to the death of his friend. He smiled at Hansel and slowly began to cut Gretel's clothing from her body.

"That was a mistake killin Anders and now I'm gonna have to punish this little bitch here for what you did." Gustav growled as he continued to cut away at Gretel's clothes.

He smiled triumphantly as he cut through the bindings of her corset and ripped it apart to bare her breasts. Hansel felt his blood run cold as the disgusting man licked and sucked at Gretel's breasts. He could see his sister shudder with revile. Her resolve to not cry out shattered a moment later when Gustav climbed on top of her and began to thrust into her.

For a second; which in Hansel's mind seemed to last forever, Gretel met his eyes. He could see pain and fear in her eyes, but what was worse was the look of shame. He knew that she didn't want him to see what was being done to her.

After a few minutes Gustav groaned and shuddered on top of Gretel. Once he climbed down from the table he untied Gretel's hands and feet. Hansel hoped that he was finished and would leave now that he'd taken what he wanted. Moving with the agility of a cat Gretel leapt from the table and scrambled to grab the crossbow.

Gustav smiled widely, enjoying the game he was playing, and grabbed Gretel by one ankle. She slammed to the ground right at Hansel's feet. Her head connected with the wooden floor so hard that Hansel could feel the vibration of the impact. Blood from her cut cheek splattered onto Hansel's boots. She stared up at her brother with a dazed look which quickly turned to panic as Gustav began pulling her back towards the table.

Gretel screamed as Gustav lifted her back up to the table and slammed her down so hard that the air rushed from her lungs. Her body went limp as she slipped into unconsciousness and didn't fight as Gustav pulled the rest of her clothing off and once again began to rape her.

"Gretel wake up!" Hansel shouted as he watched her being ravaged while totally helpless.

Hansel pulled desperately at his chains, drawing blood from his wrists as he scraped them raw against the metal. His body began to shake violently and his vision became blurry. Hansel knew it was the sugar sickness getting to him. He was far past due for his medication. Too bad Anders had stripped him of all his gear and thrown it onto the table above Gretel's head. He could see the pouch containing his medicine tantalizingly out of his reach. The shaking became so bad that his legs gave out and he fell to the ground, the chains pulling painfully at his arms as he hung limply from them.

Gretel moaned and opened her eyes. Gustav's face filled her vision, red and twisted with exertion as he thrust into her over and over.

Hansel's vision began to dim, it now seemed like Gretel was falling away from him down a long dark tunnel. He did his best to stay awake, to keep his eyes locked on his sisters so that she would know he was there for her, that he wasn't leaving her. He held onto her gaze as long as he could. He ignored the shaking of his body, and the horrible pains that ran through him like fire. No matter how much it hurt he knew it was nothing compared to what his sister was experiencing. His last thought before he slipped away was that he wished he could tell his sister once more how much she meant to him.

He wished he could tell her he loved her…

A/N- Thank you again for everyone who is reading. Big super thanks to the people who review, it's awesome that there are people enjoying my story.


	5. Chapter 5

Ben had never felt this good in his entire life. He returned to the town of Aft to a hero's welcome. He'd done it. He'd taken out a witch all on his own and managed to safely return each and every missing child. Well admittedly Edward had helped quite a bit, but it had been Ben who'd nailed the witch with a crossbow bolt and tied her to a tree. After that Edward had beheaded her with the pull of one giant hand. They'd found the girls tied up in a cave just behind the small stone cottage which had belonged to the now dead witch.

Once the children had been returned to their relieved and grateful families Ben had been welcomed to the tavern and given all the food and drink he could handle. It wasn't until a few hours later when the sun was beginning to go down that it occurred to Ben that Hansel and Gretel still hadn't returned. He gave it another half hour before he began to worry about them. The sun had set and he knew that Hansel and Gretel wouldn't stay in the woods after dark if they believed there was a witch nearby.

Ben left the tavern, although it took him longer than he'd like to get out because of all the people thanking him and offering him drinks. Once he'd made his way out of the bar he followed the smell of horses to the small stable which lay at the edge of town.

"Hello?" He called to the empty barn and darkened cottage which lay next to the horses. It was after dark but it wasn't late enough for the place to be so deserted.

"Hello? Is anyone here? I need a horse." He called as he began walking through the stalls of horses.

From the back of the darkened barn he heard a low moaning. Grabbing a lantern off the wall he cautiously moved to the last stall. Lying down in the hay with his hands tied to a post above his head was Joseph, the man who'd come to their room that morning. His right eye was swollen shut and a long stream of blood ran down his cheek from a large cut on his temple. His mouth had been gagged with a dirty rag so that he couldn't cry out for help.

Ben set the lantern down and began trying to untie him, as he struggled to cut through the ropes Joseph frantically tried to speak to him through his gag. Ben untied the dirty cloth and pulled it from his mouth. He coughed and sucked in a large breath of air before he could speak.

"It's alright, I'm going to get you some help." Ben assured the injured man.

"You have to help Gretel." Joseph insisted in a hoarse whisper.

"Gretel? Why what's wrong?" Ben asked, fear making his entire body stiffen.

"I heard Gustav and his friend talking this morning. They sent Hansel and Gretel out to Gustav's hunting cabin. They were going to wait for them there to get payback for Gretel cutting Gustav's face last night. I tried to stop them, but Gustav hit me with a shovel and then tied me up here." He explained as Ben finished untying him.

"Payback? What do you mean payback, what were they planning to do?" Ben asked fearfully.

Joseph didn't reply but the look on his face was enough to let Ben know just what it was that Gustav had planned for his friend. Ben knew that Hansel and Gretel could handle themselves, especially against just two human men, but the fact that they still hadn't returned to town warned Ben that something had gone terribly wrong.

Joseph quickly began saddling up two horses. "I know where the cabin is. We should hurry." Joseph insisted.

"I'm going to get my friend first. If we need help it can't hurt having a troll with us." Ben said.

"You're friends with a troll?" Joseph asked sounding both awed and scared.

Ben simply nodded, he was too distracted with worry for his friends to be amused. As soon as one of the horses was finished Ben swung himself into the saddle. "Wait here for me. I'll be back with Edward and then you can show me where this cabin is." He ordered, sounding suddenly much more confident than he ever had before.

He kicked his horse into a gallop and hurried into the woods where he'd left Edward earlier that evening. He found the troll fast asleep against an Oak tree, a large line of drool hanging between his lips and his shirt.

"Edward wake up!" He yelled.

Edward's eyes opened slowly and he looked around in drowsy confusion. "Gretel's in trouble." Was all Ben had to say before Edward jumped to his feet with surprising nimbleness for one so large.

"Where's Gretel?" He asked. His low growly voice was filled with obvious concern for the young woman who'd been the first person to ever show him any kindness in his life. He'd have done anything for her. Without replying Ben turned his horse back towards town and heard the booming footsteps as Edward followed.

Edward walked along behind the two men on horseback as they hurried through the dark woods. It took longer than Ben would have liked to get there. Joseph had trouble remembering where the cabin was, especially in the dark.

By the time the three companions found their destination it was already becoming light above the trees off in the east. They found the horses which Hansel and Gretel had taken tied up near a stream. Ben and Joseph left their horses tied up with the others and moved towards the cabin at a slow, cautious pace. It was eerily silent inside the wooden shack. The lack of noise scared Ben far more than any sounds of fighting he could have heard.

"Both of you wait here I'm going to sneak over and look in the window. Hopefully we can take them by surprise." Ben instructed.

Keeping low to the ground and in the shadows created by the barely rising sun, Ben snuck around to the side of the cabin where one dusty window was placed just at his eye level. It took him a few seconds of squinting before he could make out anything in the still darkened room.

Adrenaline rushed through his body, his hands tightening into fists, and his heart thundered in his chest when he saw the two huddled unmoving shapes of his friends huddled in one corner of the room. He also spied two more prone bodies in the cabin as well and figured they belonged to Gustav and his friend. His blood ran cold as he hurried towards the door, he was afraid that he would find nothing but corpses once he entered the small shack.

Stepping cautiously through the doorway the first thing Ben was aware of was the smell of blood. The tangy metallic sent was so heavy in the air that it nearly made him gag. Ignoring the other two bodies Ben hurried to his friends, praying that he would find them both alive. He released the breath he'd been holding when he saw both of their chests rising and falling, although neither of the siblings was conscious.

"Gretel? Hansel?" Ben called loudly, waiting for some sign of life from either of them.

Hansel didn't move at all, but Gretel moaned and began to move. Ben gasped when Gretel's head lifted up from Hansel's chest giving Ben a perfect view of the long straight cut running down Gretel's cheek. The long cut matched the one she'd given to Gustav perfectly. It marred her lovely face and Ben knew that it would leave a scar.

After several seconds of struggling Gretel finally opened her eyes. At first Ben could see nothing but confusion in the young woman's eyes, but the confusion quickly turned to a look of panic and anger. She let out a strangled cry and swiped at Ben with the knife he'd failed to notice clutched in her hand. Ben threw himself backwards into the wooden table causing it to squeal as it moved backwards against his weight. Ben hissed with pain as the knife cut into the meat of his upper right arm. He hit the floor on his backside and scrambled backwards until he was almost underneath the table.

After her initial attack Gretel scurried back into the corner of the cabin, the knife held out in front of her. Her chest heaved with panicked breathing and Ben saw that her shirt had been cut open so that he was finally seeing the lovely smooth breasts which he'd fantasized about so many times. He shuddered when he saw teeth and finger marks bruising the creamy flesh. It was obvious what had happened to her and Ben felt his blood nearly boil with hatred at the person who would ever dream of hurting her.

"Gretel it's ok." He said in a soft calm voice. "It's me Ben." He continued in the same soothing tone.

Gretel blinked and realization of what was happening dawned on her. She dropped the knife and slumped down in the corner.

"Ben?" She asked in a voice the young man barely recognized. She sounded small and hurt and so very vulnerable.

"It's alright Gretel. Edwards outside, we're going to help you." He assured her.

"We have to help Hansel. His medicine h- he n-needed it, but I couldn't get to it. He w-w-won't wake up." She stuttered between sobs which she refused to allow out.

Ben turned his attention to the man who he admired above all others. Hansel was lying on his back, his hands shackled above his head so that he was stretched out painfully. He was breathing, but it was a shallow quick breath which scared Ben.

"Is everything alright?" Joseph called from the doorway. Ben could see Edward looking over Joseph's shoulder.

"It's ok, just give us a minute." Ben instructed. He'd seen the panic fill Gretel's eyes at the sound of Joseph's voice and Ben wanted to keep things as calm as possible for the hurt woman.

Ben pulled himself up from the floor, ignoring the cut in his arm, and turned to the still body of Gustav. The body was stiff with rigor mortis and already cold. Ben saw that his throat had been slit from ear to ear and the body was lying in a large pool of sticky drying blood. Wrinkling his nose in disgust Ben turned the body over and began searching the pockets hoping to find the key to the shackles. When nothing turned up Ben moved to the other corpse to search it as well. The other man, who Ben vaguely remembered from the tavern, had had his neck broken so severely that his head was nearly turned all the way around. He found the key in the man's pocket and worked quickly to unlock Hansel.

Hansel slumped all the way to the floor when the shackles released, but he made no sign of coming around.

"Hansel?" Ben called loudly and tapped his face.

Ben was dismayed to feel just how cool Hansel's face was. His skin was covered in a fine sheen of clammy sweat and his skin was a pale grey color which was obviously bad.

"We need to get him to a healer." Ben informed Gretel. She nodded and seemed to gather up her wits as she stood up. She suddenly became the Gretel who Ben was used to; strong, self-assured, and in control.

"Edward can carry him. Are the horses still outside?" She asked as she pulled the ruined remains of her shirt together to cover her nudity.

Ben nodded and moved towards the door. "Joseph we need to get Hansel to a healer as soon as possible. Can you help me carry him outside?"

Joseph nodded and hurried towards the cabin. Ben held up a hand to stop him from entering. He leaned close to the slightly older man and whispered in his ear. "Gustav raped her. Try not to move too fast or get too close to her. She's barely holding it together." He instructed.

Joseph nodded and took a breath to calm down before entering the shack. Moving quickly the two men gently picked up Hansel and carried him out of the cabin, laying him down on the soft grass in the sunshine. Gretel followed them out of the cabin; knowing that from now on this place would be the place she saw in her nightmares. She felt an almost overwhelming need to burn the place down. To burn Gustav's body until there was nothing left of him or the shack but a pile of smoldering ashes. The only thing that stopped her was the driving need to get Hansel the help he needed. Joseph and Ben hurried away to get the horses, leaving Gretel alone with her unconscious brother and Edward.

Edward understood what had happened and hated that his friends were hurt so badly. He approached Gretel slowly and put a large hand on her shoulder. Gretel sighed and leaned against the giant troll, letting him give her a tight hug. He seemed so solid and strong, it made Gretel feel safer to be in his arms. Edward didn't speak, he just held her and rubbed her back with one giant mitt of a hand.

She pulled away from him as she heard the men returning with the horses. She quickly wiped away the tears which had streamed down her cheeks.

Edward gently picked up Hansel as the others mounted their horses. Gretel cried out in pain as she climbed onto the horse. Her body hurt in more places than she knew could hurt. Her nether region burned and throbbed, reminding her of the terrible invasion she's been put through.

"Gretel are you alright?" Ben asked.

Gretel pulled in a deep breath and nodded. "I'm fine let's get back to Aft." She ordered.

Joseph shook his head. "We can't go back to Aft. Gretel you killed the magistrate's son. They'll lock you up as soon as they find out."

"No way. After what that bastard did to her. They won't blame Gretel for what she did." Ben protested.

"This isn't the first time Gustav's done something like this. He's never seen the inside of a jail cell before. His dad always protected him. It won't matter what he did to Gretel, she'll still be punished for killing him." Joseph countered.

"So what do we do?" Gretel asked.

Joseph shifted in the saddle and thought for a moment. "We can head through the woods to Evansville. It's on the other side of the forest and I know they have a good healer there. He saved my sister when she had a bad fever last winter." He suggested.

Gretel thought this over and nodded reluctantly. "Alright let's go to Evansville. But we need to hurry." She ordered, giving her unconscious brother one more concerned glance before kneeing her horse and hurrying into the woods with the others following close behind.

A/N- I'm sorry it's been so long between updates. I actually just gave birth to twin baby girls, so I've been a little preoccupied. I'll try to keep updating as quickly as possible but i apologize for any long delays. Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! You are awesome!


	6. Chapter 6

They arrived at the town of Evansville that afternoon. Gretel sighed with relief as the buildings appeared before her. Her body was more than ready to give out on her; the only thing that had kept her going was the driving need to get Hansel some help.

"The healer's cottage is that one on the right, near the well." Joseph informed them, pointing out the small cozy hut of the man who they hoped could help their leader.

Gretel slid off of her horse and hurried to the door. She knocked forcefully and waited impatiently as she heard the occupant inside slowly making their way to the door. The wooden door swung open to reveal a small old man with piercing green eyes.

"Are you the healer?" Gretel asked hopefully.

The old man nodded, but did not speak.

"Please my brother needs help." Gretel whimpered.

The man nodded again and stepped out into the sunshine. Gretel sighed with relief and then felt her knees give way. She dropped to the ground before anyone could catch her and slipped mercifully into unconsciousness.

Gretel awoke much like she had when Ben had taken care of her. She became aware of a warm wet cloth being wiped gently across the cut on her cheek. The hand taking care of her was gentle but it stung like fire as the wound was cleaned. Gretel opened her eyes and found an old woman with a kind face staring down at her.

"My brother?" She whispered in a hoarse voice.

"Shhhh. It's alright child. My husband is looking after your brother. You just stay still and let me get you cleaned up." The old woman comforted softly.

Gretel looked around and found that she was in a bedroom of what she figured must be the healer's cottage. The room was small but cozy with dried flowers hanging in bunches across the window. The bed Gretel was lying in was stuffed with feathers and the quilt covering her was soft and warm. She noticed that she was no longer wearing her ruined bloody clothing, but was now dressed in a soft wool nightdress and it made her wonder how long she'd been unconscious.

"Is my brother going to be alright?" Gretel asked fearfully.

The old woman ran a hand through Gretel's hair. "I don't know but my husband is a good healer. He'll do everything he can to see your brother through this."

Gretel nodded and settled back down on the pillow a few treacherous tears escaped and ran down her cheeks, further stinging the cut marring her lovely face. The old woman used the cloth to wipe them away.

"What's your name child?" She asked quietly.

"Gretel."

"Gretel the witch hunter." The old woman said, not as a question, but with a knowing voice which told Gretel that she and her brother's fame was known even here in this tiny village. "So that must be Hansel who my husband is looking after." She continued.

Gretel nodded, her eyes once more filling with tears. Had she ever cried so much in her entire life? She must have cried in those days following the candy house. The horror of what had happened to them and the knowledge that their parents had abandoned them must have brought her to tears. Or the days months later when Hansel lay writhing with pain from some sickness she didn't understand, she must have cried then too. But she couldn't remember crying during those dark first days. She only remembered some unspoken certainty that no matter what Hansel would keep her safe.

But this time Hansel hadn't been able to save her. He'd tried so hard and yet that man, the things he'd done to her had been horrible. Much worse than any of the injuries any witch had ever given her. Gustav had made her feel helpless, he'd taken away all of the bravado she'd built up over the years of hunting and killing witches and Gretel wasn't sure if there was anything left of her without that. Who was she if not Gretel the Witch Hunter?

The old woman shushed her and ran a soft warm hand over Gretel's forehead smoothing back the tangled blood matted hair. "It wasn't a witch who did this to you was it?"

Gretel shook her head minutely and felt the tears begin to flow harder.

"Oh child." The old woman murmured and pulled Gretel to her, rocking the young woman gently as Gretel cried.

Her tears tapered off a few minutes later and she pulled away from the old woman with a hiccup and a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry I don't usually cry like this." Gretel whispered.

The woman smiled kindly and brushed the tears away from her cheeks. "I'm sure that whatever was done to you was more than enough to warrant a few tears." She whispered. "I've heated a tub of water, would you like to get cleaned up?" The old woman continued.

Gretel nodded gratefully and sat up in bed so that she could see a large copper tub sitting in one corner of the room, steam rising from within. The old woman rose slowly to her feet and turned to leave the room, giving Gretel some privacy.

"Wait!" Gretel called. "What's your name?"

The old woman smiled brightly. "My name is Elsa, my husband's name is Uther."

"I can't thank you enough for everything Elsa. I- I don't have much money right now, we didn't get paid for the last job, but I can give you everything I have." Gretel stammered uncomfortably.

Elsa waved a hand dismissively. "The stories of you and your brother have reached us even here in our tiny town. I'd say that you've both done enough good work to earn whatever help we can possibly give you. You're both welcome here for as long as you need to stay."

Gretel's eyes dropped to the ground; partially from embarrassment, but mostly from gratitude.

"Get yourself cleaned up and I'll go check on your brother." Elsa ordered and pointed towards the bathtub.

After the old woman had left the room Gretel dropped the nightgown on to the bed and stepped into the hot water. The hot water soothed the screaming aches in her muscles, but stung the various small cuts and scrapes scattered across her skin. She watched with a kind of numb fascination as the dried blood on her body liquefied and swirled into the water, turning the once clear water a rusty brown color.

She sat in the water until it began to turn cold, for the first time in over twenty-four hours her mind was blissfully blank. Gretel figured things would get bad again at some point, but for the moment her brain was able to think calmly and rationally.

Hurrying to get clean before the water became uncomfortably cold Gretel used the bar of soap which Elsa had left for her to scrub her body and hair. She cleaned for longer than was necessary, but she still felt dirty and violated.

A sudden quiet knocking on the door made Gretel startle and drop the bar of soap into the water.

"Gretel." Elsa called from the other side of the wooden door. "Your brother is beginning to wake up."

Gretel jumped out of the water instantly and hurriedly dried herself before pulling the wool nightgown over her head once again. She was out of the room in less than three minutes. She quickly scanned the small cottage taking in the small kitchen area where Ben and Joseph were seated at a wooden table. On the other side of the room was a small cot, which the healer obviously used for patients.

Hansel rested on the small bed, covered by a thin blanket. He obviously wasn't fully conscious yet but was starting to stir and mumble a little. Gretel hurried to his side; oblivious to anyone else in the room, her attention focused solely on her older brother. She took a seat on the straw stuffed mattress and picked up Hansel's hand giving it a tight squeeze.

"Hansel can you hear me? It's Gretel." She whispered. Just as Elsa had done for her earlier she gently ran her hand over Hansel's forehead.

"It will take him awhile before he is fully conscious. The Sugar Sickness can be very hard on the body." Uther the healer explained to Gretel. She simply nodded and continued to focus on her brother.

Hansel struggled for another twenty minutes before finally opening his eyes. He looked around in confusion; his gaze glazed and unfocused.

"Hansel, it's alright I'm right here." Gretel comforted as she leaned over her brother.

"Gretel? Where are we?" He rasped in a hoarse voice barely above a whisper.

"We're in the town on the other side of the woods from Aft. At the healer's home." Gretel explained.

Hansel's brow furrowed in confusion as his eyes continued to dart around the room. "Why's it so dark?" He mumbled.

This time it was Gretel's turn to look confused. True it wasn't overly bright in the cabin but there was plenty of sun shining through the windows.

"Hansel it's not dark in here." She explained quietly.

Hansel's eyes stopped scanning the room and attempted to look into his sister's. Her heart felt like it dropped in her chest when his gaze landed a few inches to the left of her eyes, so that he appeared to be looking over her shoulder.

"Gretel I can't see anything." He whispered his voice full of fear.

TBC…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N- So sorry it's been so long since I've updated. Who knew having twins would be so time-consuming? Lol. Plus the lack of sleep has given me a serious case of writer's block, but I'm trying to power through. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter and I'll try to be faster with my updating in the future. Thanks again everyone for reading and reviewing.


End file.
